About the Design: Before I get into the construction, I want to point out some of the Scratch-One's design features. Cutting out wing ribs can be a tedious job, especially for a beginner. So in this design I eliminated all wing ribs and substituted balsa sticks.

The bottom stick is ¹/₈ x ¹/₄ balsa. Next come three different-size wing spars, then ¹/₁₆ x ¹/₄ balsa sticks are bent over the spars to provide the necessary airfoil shape. The leading edge is common ³/₁₆-inch-diameter hardwood dowel. You won't likely experience much damage on rough landings with this kind of construction.

I also made the wing's center-section flat so that no center joiner or brace is necessary. Both tips are raised 4¹/₂ inches for what we call "polyhedral." These raised tips provide overall stability in flight.

Many models have what I call "internal" battery compartments; to access the battery pack for charging purposes, you must remove the wing. I find that annoying and time-consuming, so in this design the battery compartment is on the bottom of the fuselage where it can be accessed directly without touching the wing.

Probably the most difficult task for the beginner is to mount the servos and hook up the control rods that operate the rudder and elevator. To keep it simple I placed the two servos on top of the fuselage, just aft of the wing trailing edge. It's kind of like "letting it all hang out"!

The control rods are run externally from the servo output arms back to the control horns on the rudder and elevator. This makes for easy control throw adjustments and easy centering of the controls. These few ideas made the Scratch-One extremely simple to build and fly!